Author Type

Graduate Student

Date of Award

2018

Document Type

Dissertation

Publication Status

Version of Record

Submission Date

October 2026

Thesis/Dissertation Advisor [Chair]

Laursen, Brett

Abstract

Adverse parenting practices have adverse effects on child outcomes, ranging from lower academic success (Dornbusch, Ritter, Leiderman, Roberts, & Fraleigh, 1987) to delinquency behavior (Steinberg, Fletcher & Darling, 1994) to adjustment difficulties (Shumow & Lomax, 2009). There is considerable evidence linking poor parenting practices to increases in adolescent adjustment symptoms (e.g. Barnes, Reifman, Farrell, & Dintcheff, 2000). It is likely that there is an explanatory mechanism driving this relationship. The current study tests the hypotheses that associations between adverse parenting behaviors are both directly associated with adjustment problems, and indirectly associated with maladjustment via changes in self-views. A staggered cohort longitudinal design was employed that included a total of 453 (215 boys, 238 girls) 9th graders and 464 (231 boys, 233 girls) 10th graders at the first assessment in spring, 2013. At the onset of the study, adolescents completed scales describing parental monitoring (Small & Kerns, 1993), parental psychological control (Barber, 1996), and parental connectedness (Arnold, Nott, & Meinhold, 2012). Adolescents also described indices of self-esteem (Rosenberg, 1965), self-efficacy (Schwarzer & Jerusalem, 1995), and adjustment behaviors (Achenbach & Rescorla, 2001). Results from the direct effects models revealed parenting practices have a direct effect on adolescent adjustment. Mediation models revealed indirect links between parenting practices and adolescent adjustment via self-esteem. Greater parental psychological control and less parental connectedness was linked to decreases in selfesteem one year later, and lower levels of self-esteem were in turn, associated with increases in adolescent adjustment problems. This study provides insight on the impact that parenting practices have on adolescents both directly and indirectly. Parents should understand that even though adolescents are seeking autonomy and separation, practicing attentive and meaningful parenting is just as important during adolescence as it is during any other periods of development.

Extent

127 p.

Comments

Includes bibliography.|Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2018.|FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection|Includes bibliography.

Identifier

FA00013071

Format

pdf

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